Friday, 6 September 2013

Kempe Gowda's Yakshagana

Normally, Kempe Gowda I or simply
known as Kempe Gowda, the ruler of Bangalore, is
credited with having founded the metropolis of Bangalore.

He is also known as Hiriya
Kempe Gowda or Bangalore Kempe Gowda. He was the son of Kempananje Gowda.

Kempe Gowda is also credited
with having made Bangalore
the capital after shifting base from Yelahanka.

Many tanks and lakes, fort,
temples are ascribed to him as are the many petes of the old town that exists
even today. The petes-Chickpet, Doddapet, Nagarthpet, Ranasinghpet, Balepet
exist even today.

However, Kempe Gowda is known
for one more achievement of which little is known. He is credited with the
composition of a Yakshagana composition “Ganga Gowri Vilasamu”.

This work is in Telugu and it
is the earliest known Yakshagana in Bangalore
and also among the first of such works in Telugu.

The fact that Kempe Gowda
wrote in Telugu and not in Tamil gives credence to the fact that they were Morasu
Vokkaligas from near Kolar and that even if their forefathers came to Karnataka
from near Kanchi, they could not have been native Tamils.

They had first settled at
Avati from where the family branched out to different places-Yelahanka, Magadi
and Anekal.

The branch that first settled
at Yelahanka and then moved to Bangalore
was the Kempe Gowda family. Apart from founding Bangalore and investing it with so many
facilities that it quickly became a centre of trade, commerce and business, it
also was a place of art and literature.

Kempe Gowda himself
encouraged art, sculpture, architecture and literature. His Ganga Gowri
Vilasamu has 44 songs in different ragas. It closely follows the Bayalatta
style of composition.

Though Yakshagana is native
to coastal Karnataka, particularly, Utara Kannada, Dakshina Kannada, Shimoga
and Udupi, the fact that Kempe Gowda wrote one such play is testimony enough
that this form of art had spread to south Karnataka as well and that it was a
popular form of entertainment then apart from Javali singing.

Kempe Gowda’s work came when
Yakshanaga in Telugu and even in other languages were just beginning. It was
only a few decades later that Yakshagana developed into what it is today.

Even today, the Vilasamu is
staged in Bangalore
city by several troupes. However, apart from the field of literature, Yakshagana
and research, not many are aware of
Ganga Gowri Vilasamu.

Kempe Gowda died in 1569,
having ruled for about 56 years. A metallic statue of Kempe Gowda can be seen
at the Gangadhareshwara temple in Shivaganga. This was installed in 1609.
Another statue of Kempe Gowda was
installed in 1964 and this was in front of the Corporation offices in Bangalore.